CommediaGroup2 - Stock Characters

Major Characters

Name	Status	Physical Characteristics	Lazzi
Arlecchino	Servant (Usually to Pantalone)	Always ready to jump into action, clumsy yet graceful, guttural speech, no dramatic pauses or hesitation	Finds ways to lose appendages, sticks head through people's legs, somersault, misuses props
Pedrolino	Originally a servant, occasionally the youngest son, always the butt of the joke	Youthful and childlike, walks in straight lines	Imitation, tangling of sleeves, falling down
Pantalone	Wealthy, the father, top of the pecking order, crotchety	Bent over from age, leers at women, bow-legged, toes pointing out, high pitched speech	Tooth extractor, wooing young women, farting, bent back
Columbina	Personal maid to female Innamorata	Originally strong and attractive, later petite and pretty, slite forward tilt to hips, speedy and efficient, sharp and gossipy	Appears before her name is called, finishes her master's sentences, makes other characters compliment her
Vittoria	Inmamorata, adopted child or orphan, high-status	Young and attractive, aristocratic, seems to float, vain
Isabella	Inamorata, prima donna	Young and attractive, seems to float, flirtatious, a tease	Throws tantrums until she gets her way, long dramatic sigh, rolling eyes, feigning shock when caught in an embarrassing position
Lelio	Innamorati, high-status	Young, fashionable, dapper, engaging, seems to float	Afraid of engaging with women, hypochondriac, sensitive, tangents into long soliloquies of rhyming poetry until knocked unconscious
Flavio	Innamorati, son, pride and joy of the main family,	Young and attractive, seems to float, extravagant, speaks softly in musical sentences	Hot-tempered, bullies anyone he can, trips or falls while tries to look cool, loses his temper
Capitano	Loner, not indigenous to the town	Large (physically and egotistically), chest pushed forward, reminiscent of a peacock	Makes long excuses, tries to stop fights but ends up being the target of the fight, afraid of Colombina's love
Pulcinella	Can be master or servant, no respecter of persons	Small, jerky steps, chicken-like, either stupid pretending to be clever or clever pretending to be stupid	Picks a fight then refuses to fight , pretends to be a doctor then injures the patient further

Tim. “Stock Characters.” Commedia Homepage, www.tim-shane.com/commedia-stock-characters.htm.